Talor Gooch produced another composed round to be tied for the individual lead after the second round of the LIV Golf Riyadh event.
Gooch, competing in his first tournament as Smash GC captain, sits at 10 under after carding a second consecutive five-under-par 67 under the lights at Riyadh Golf Club on Thursday night.
Joining Gooch at the top of the individual leaderboard are 4Aces GC’s Thomas Detry and RangeGoats GC’s Peter Uihlein, both of whom followed opening-round leads with three-under-par 69s.
Gooch’s Smash teammate Jason Kokrak fired a bogey-free eight-under-par 64 – the lowest score of the tournament through two rounds – to move into a share of fourth place at nine under alongside Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm, Torque GC’s Sebastián Muñoz and new Ripper GC signing Elvis Smylie. Fireballs GC duo Sergio Garcia and David Puig are tied eighth at eight under.
South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen followed his opening five-under-par 67 with a one-under 71 to be tied 14th on six under.
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Gooch and Kokrak’s efforts helped Smash GC open a three-shot lead in the team competition.
“We wanted to get off to a hot start this year, so we’ve done good through two rounds,” said Gooch, an original LIV Golf member who played the previous two seasons under former captain Brooks Koepka. “But we’re only halfway there, so there’s a lot of golf left.”
Gooch, Kokrak and Graeme McDowell have now been teammates for three consecutive seasons. Along with Gooch stepping into the captaincy, Smash also added his close friend Harold Varner III during the offseason.
Varner opened with a four-under-par 68 on Wednesday for the team’s second-best score of the day, while McDowell’s six-under-par 66 on Thursday ranked second behind Kokrak. Smash GC combined for a 20-under-par team total in round two to move clear of Torque GC.
Asked about the team dynamic, Kokrak said: “I think it’s great. All four of us get along. Talor has been a great captain so far — leads by example. Obviously with HV3 on the team it’s a whole vibe in itself, but he’s a wonderful guy. G-Mac is one of my closest friends. I think we’re going to have a lot of fun this year.”
Detry, making his LIV Golf debut, is experiencing the dual individual and team format for the first time. Despite the 4Aces not having won since 2023 and fielding reserve Miguel Tabuena this week, the Belgian is driving their challenge. Captain Dustin Johnson returned to form with a five-under-par 67 on Thursday, while fellow Belgian Thomas Pieters added a four-under 68.
“I like to make statements, especially in my first week out here,” Detry said. “I’ve played the last 10 years mainly as an individual, so you don’t always think about a team.
“I was taking care of my own business, then suddenly I saw the 4Aces climbing the leaderboard and realised I was also playing for the team, which is great.”
Uihlein, one of eight players to have competed in all 51 LIV Golf events, finished third in the inaugural 2022 Individual Championship but has yet to convert multiple chances into a tournament victory. He hopes Riyadh will be different, although his RangeGoats GC sit 11th on the team leaderboard, 22 shots off the pace.
“Winning individually is the goal,” Uihlein said. “Now that we get world ranking points, you can move up in the OWGR and try to get into the Majors.
“That would be awesome. There are some unbelievable players out here, and to say you’ve won and beaten them would be pretty special.”
One of those players is Gooch, who claimed three titles in 2023 en route to winning the season-long Individual Championship and added a fourth victory last season. He has now lifted 13 LIV Golf trophies, tying Rahm for the most in league history.
“I don’t know what the winning score is going to be,” Gooch said. “This is the first time we’ve played 72 holes, so who knows what it’s going to look like.”
Photo: Mateo Villalba/LIV Golf